Inlet valve actuator for flush tanks



June 9, 1953 R. w. STAMBAUGH 2,641,275

INLET VALVE ACTUATOR FOR FLUSH TANKS Filed June 25, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig- Fi 2 fiusse/l W; Stambaugh mmvroza.

June 9, 1953 R. w. S TAMBAUGH 2,641,275

INLET VALVE ACTUATOR FOR FLUSH TANKS- F' iled Jun 25, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 V q r 38 44 I 26 W fif ll uunnujiiiLnnn... j

i i' i 50 i & 30/? i /30 I Russell W Siambaugh Z0 3 INVENTOR.

Patented June 9, 1,953

UNITED INLET VALVE ACTUATOR FOR FLUSH TANKS Russell W. Stambaugh, Tucson, Ariz.

- Application June 25, 1951, Serial No. 233,372

This invention relates to new and useful improvements and structural refinements in inlet valve actuators for flush tanks, and the principal object of the invention is to assure proper and efficient opening and closing of the inlet valve in accordance with the presence or absence of water in the flush tank, as the case may be.

A conventional flush tank inlet valve is opened and closed in responseto the rising or falling movement of a float which is buoyant on the water in the tank, but an important feature of the present invention resides in utilizing the weight of water rather than buoyancy for actuating the inlet valve.

Some of the advantages of the invention re- 1 side its simplicity of construction, in its effi cient and dependable operation, and in its adaptability for installation in new tanks as well as those already in existence.

With the above more important objects and features in view, and such other objects and features as may become apparent as this specification proceeds, the invention consists essentially of the arrangement and construction of parts as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in

which:

Figure l is a transverse sectional view of the flush tank showing the invention installed therein, the inlet valve being illustrated in its closed position;

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view, similar to that shown in Figure 1, but illustrating the inlet valve in its open position;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 33 in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a horizontal sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 4-4 in Figure l; and

Figure 5 is a sectional detail, taken substantially in the plane of the line 5-5 in Figure 1.

Like characters of reference are employed to designate like parts in the specification and throughout the several views.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the general reference character ill desi nates a conventional flush tank provided with the usual outlet (not shown) and including a water inlet pipe l2 provided at its upper end with an inlet valve I4 having a control arm l6 which is lowered as shown in Figure 1 when the valve is closed, but which, by being raised to the position shown in Figure 2, causes the valve to open.

The invention resides in the provision of means l8 for actuating the valve l4, these means comprising a box-shaped enclosure 26 which is "dry in the sense that it does not contain any water. The enclosure 26, provided with a pair of clamp brackets 22, may be conveniently afixed to the water inlet pipe i2 so that a substantial portion of the enclosure is submerged in the water in the flush tank, the normal water level being indicated approximately at 24.

The enclosure 0 has a removable top 26 provided with an opening 28 and a box-shaped receptacle iiii, somewhat smaller than the enclosure, is removably positioned within the latter, that it is free to rise and fall therein. The receptacle 683 is biased to its upwardly shifted position by means of a suitable spring 32 which is interposed between the bottom of the receptacle and the bottom of the enclosure 26, it being understood that in the position shown in Figure 2, the spring 3'? is fully extended.

The upper end or top of the receptacle 36 may be provided with a vent opening 34 so that the interior of the receptacle communicates through this vent opening and through the opening 28 with the atmosphere, that is, with the air inside the hush tank, and a strap 36, secured to the upper end of the receptacle 36, extends freely and slidably through the opening 28 and is operatively connected as at 38 to linkage 46, 42 associated with the control arm or lever I6 of the inlet valve l4. The connection 38 preferably assumes the form of a screw extending through a slot 44 in thestrap 36, so that when the receptacle 36 is in its raised position, supported by the spring 32, the screw 38 is in the upper end of the slot 44 and no undue pressure is exerted on the linkage 40, 42, IS.

A flexible tube 46 has its lower portion disposed in the lower portion of the enclosure 20 and one end of this tube communicates with the interior of the flush tank 16 as indicated at 48, while the upper end portion of the tube 46 is disposed within the receptacle 30 and is of an inverted U- shaped configuration, as indicated at 56. The tube portion 56 is relatively rigid and the terminal end 52 thereof is spaced closely from the bottom or the receptacle 36, as shown.

When the invention is in operation, assuming the flush tank ID to be empty as shown in Figure 2, the spring 32 will raise the receptacle 20 to the position shown, so that the valve 14 will be open and ingress of water into the flush tank will be facilitated.

As the incoming water fills the tank and reaches the level of the lower end 48 of the tube 46, the water will rise within the tube 46 simultaneously with the water level in the flush tank and when the water in the tube reaches the highest portion of the tube portion 50, it will simply gravitate through the extremity 52 of the tube and commence to fill the receptacle 30 at the same time as the flush tank is being filled.

As the weight of the water in the receptacle 30 increases, the spring 32 will become gradually compressed and the receptacle 30 will be shifted downwardly in the enclosure 20, until eventually an ultimate position shown in Figure 1 is reached where the descending receptacle 30 has closed the valve [4, thus preventing further ingress of water into the flush tank.

In this position the water level within' the receptacle 30 will correspond to that within the flush tank and when the tank is subsequently flushed, the discharging water in the flush tank will create a siphoning action through the tube 46, 50 so that the water in the receptacle 30 will be evacuated and as the receptacle is being emptied, it will be forced upwardly by the spring 32 to again open the valve I4.

It is to be understood that the pressure of water in the inlet tube [2 exerts an upward lifting force on the valve [4 which, in itself, may be sufficient to sustain the receptacle 30 in its elevated position, in which event the spring 32 may be omitted.

It is believed that the advantages and use of the invention will be clearly understood from the foregoing disclosure and accordingly, further description at this point is deemed unnecessary.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of this invention, it is to be understood that minor changes in the details of construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Having described the claimed as new is:

1. A device for actuating a water inlet valve of a toilet tank, said device comprising a vertiinvention, what is cally elongated dry enclosure adapted to be mounted in a tank and extend above and below a normal level of water therein, a water receptacle shiftable vertically in said enclosure, means provided on said receptacle for operatively connecting the same to an inlet valve, resilient means for urging the receptacle upwardly in said enclosure, an inverted U-shaped siphon tube provided in and shiftable with said receptacle, one end of said tube being closely spaced above the bottom of the receptacle, the other end of the tube being secured in said bottom, and a flexible extension provided on said other end of the tube, said extension being disposed in the lower portion of said enclosure and having a free open end projecting outwardly therefrom.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said resilient means comprises a coil spring interposed between the bottom of said enclosure and the bottom of said receptacle.

3. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said enclosure includes a top wall provided with a recess, said receptacle including a closed upper end, said means for connecting the receptacle to a valve comprising a rod secured to the upper end of the receptacle and projecting outwardly through said recess, said top wall and said closed upper end being provided with vent apertures whereby the interior of the receptacle communi cates with the air in the tank.

RUSSELL W. STAMBAUGH.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,269,900 Bradford June 18, 1918 2,220,294 Sibley Nov. 5, 1940 2,303,235 Seldon Nov. 24, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 53,504 Denmark Aug. 23, 1937 

